Hello!
I'm Misty Orpin, a problem solver based in Northwest Arkansas.
Who I am
I'm a budding software developer focused on gaining and giving insight. I have almost two decades of experience storytelling about data and helping people engage with data through tools.
Where I live
I live in gorgeous Northwest Arkansas. You heard Arkansas and immediately tuned out, right? Stay with me. It's actually really awesome here in the Northwest corner of the state. We're blessed with the Ozark Mountains, first-class arts and cultural amenities, and one of the best cycling cultures in the country. Really.
I could go on and on about our awesomeness, but I'll just send you here to learn more instead.
Projects
Arkansas Covid
Created a data platform to track Covid cases in Arkansas.
Journalism
Spent a decade using data-first practices to share information.
development
Worked in various nonprofits to redevelop and energize Arkansas.
About Misty
When I was 18 years old, I started working as a reporter for my small-town newspaper. This was around the year 2000, when journalism was about to experience a major shake-up.
For the next decade, I worked to tell data-driven stories incorporating the new methods that were becoming available - social media, websites, email.
But journalism wasn't moving fast enough for me. I jumped into nonprofit work focused on community development, from building bike trails to revitalizing downtowns.
When Covid hit, the lack of transparency and data availability in my state led me down a new path. I started a project called Arkansas Covid that made our state's infection data and trends available quickly through social media and online. I focused on visualization and interactivity with a heavy use of Tableau.
I eventually turned the project over to the University of Arkansas.
Since that time, I've done community and political work, a heavy focus on data and storytelling. I have built multiple websites and cobbled together various data solutions along the way.
I'm excited to take my skills to the next level and begin building and/or better tailoring the tools that can best help people understand and interact with the complicated world around us.